The Hannibal Square Heritage Center was
established in 2007 by Crealdé School of Art, in partnership
with residents from the Hannibal Square community (west
Winter Park) and the City of Winter Park. It is a tribute to
the past, present, and future contributions of Winter Park’s
historic African-American community.

The Heritage Center hosts the
award-winning Heritage Collection: Photographs and Oral
Histories of West Winter Park, a permanent,
museum-quality exhibition of more than 100 framed, archival
pieces that capture the lives of Winter Park’s
African-American community spanning the 20th
century, and The Hannibal Square Timeline which
documents significant local and national events in African-American history since the Emancipation Proclamation.

The center also offers a rotating Visiting Exhibition Series, community-created public art
installations, as well as educational programs and that
explore the African-American experience, black heritage,
cultural preservation and Southern folklore.

Experience local history told
by the people who have lived it!

As part of the "Be a Part from the Start" initiative led by the Offices of Multicultural Affairs and Community Engagement, Rollins first-year students journeyed to The Hannibal Square Heritage Center—located less than a mile from campus—to learn about the history of the African-American community in Winter Park.

To see a clip of the Heritage Center Historians in action,
please click here.

Events and Exhibitions

Permanent Collection:

The Heritage Collection:
Photographs and Oral Histories of West Winter Park
A unique exhibition of history told by the residents who have lived it.

Friday, September 16, 2016
Opening Receptions. Explore the power of visual storytelling with 40 works of art created by 20 contemporary, self-taught and traditional artists living and working in 10 Southern states. The two-venue exhibition is curated by Teresa Hollingsworth, Katy Malone and Kristin Congdon and is on display at the Alice & William Jenkins Gallery and at the Hannibal Square Heritage Center. The evening begins with a 7-8:30 pm reception at the Jenkins Gallery, continuing from 8:30-10 pm at the Hannibal Square Heritage Center with live music.

Saturday, September 17
Sweetgrass Basketmaking Open HouseHannibal Square Heritage Center
10 am-6 pm – Open House & Basket Sale
10:30-11:30 am – Coffee and Conversation with Barbara McCormick and LaQuetta SmithBorn and raised in the sweetgrass corridor of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, Spinning Yarn featured artist Barbara McCormick and her daughter LaQuetta Smith share the traditions of their time-honored craft in a morning program and afternoon workshop (details below) as well as offering their baskets for sale, with extended hours at the center. Free.

Storytelling Traditions of Sweetgrass Basketmaking Workshop
1:30-5:30 pm, Saturday, September 17Hannibal Square Heritage Center
Learn the basics of sweetgrass basketmaking with Barbara McCormick and LaQuetta Smith. Open to adults and children ages 8 and older accompanied by an adult. Seating is available on a first-come-first-served basis. Limited to 15 participants. Free.

Sunday, September 18th
Storytelling Traditions of Sweetgrass Basketmaking Workshop, 10 am-2 pmCrealdé Main Campus, Studio 1B
$40 Members, $50 Non-membersSouth Carolina artists Barbara McCormick and her daughter LaQuetta Smith will weave stories of their time-honored tradition while guiding you to produce a basket of your own. McCormick learned the art of sweetgrass basket weaving from her family members at an early age. She carries on the West African tradition that dates back more than 300 years with her own children and teaches classes as well as exhibiting her work in museums. She can be seen in the documentary Grass Roots: The Enduring Art of the Lowcountry Basket. Materials provided. Register online at crealde.org, or call 407.671.1886. Space limited.

This project is supported by an award from the National Endowment of the Arts, the State of Florida Division of Cultural Affairs and by Orange County Government through the Arts & Cultural Affairs Program.

News & Events:

Since 2002, Peter Schreyer and the Heritage Team have been collecting and researching the history of Hannibal Square, the African-American neighborhood in West Winter Park. This summer, a dream comes true, when the Florida Historical Society publishes a book that chronicles the community project that resulted in the founding of the Hannibal Square Heritage Center and the permanent collections that are always on display.

“The Florida Historical Society Press is very pleased to be publishing the new book on the Hannibal Square Heritage Collection,” says Ben Brotemarkle, Executive Director for the FHS.

“Florida has always been an incredibly diverse state, and we strive to represent all of our various cultures and communities,” he says. “ This project provides us with a wonderful opportunity to help promote the history of an interesting African-American community through the memories and photographs of its residents. “

There are 50 personal photographs and recorded recollections of residents from West Winter Park included in the new book, representing the collaborative work of the Heritage Team: Fairolyn Livingston, Ronald Habin, Phyllis Moore, Bonnie Swain and Schreyer.

The remarkable histories have been assembled into an attractive and accessible paperback, designed in Switzerland by top European graphic designer Peter Scholl (scholldesign.com), who Schreyer has known since childhood.

The Hannibal Square Heritage Collection was released May 19-21, during the statewide conference of the Florida Historical Society in Orlando.

Schreyer adds that a further strength of the alliance with the FHS is that they publish affordable books, which are made available in libraries around the country.

The Hannibal Square Heritage Collection is available for sale at the Heritage Center and the Crealdé Art & Gift Shop.

The Hannibal Square Heritage Center is a project of the City of Winter Park and the Community Redevelopment
Agency, operated by Crealdé School of Art, a non-profit organization, and the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of Winter Park. Crealdé School of Art is a non-profit art organization supported in part by memberships, the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs; the Florida Arts Council; United Arts of Central Florida; and various private foundations.